Review: Deaf Republic by Ilya Kaminsky

When poetry becomes storytelling and a battle becomes a war.

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@shereadsbooks.sometimes

Dates read: 21/11/24 to 30/12/24

Word to describe: Community

Star rating:⭐⭐⭐

Genre: Narrative Poetry, Poetry Collection, War Stories, Disability Representation.

A war torn village comes together in silent protest when a young boy is brutally shot. A family torn apart when a newborn's mother and father and killed because of protesting. A middle-aged vixen using her sexuality to seduce soldiers to their graves with the young women of the village. A home lost forever and community broken. Dead Republic offers a scarring view of war in the perspective of three groups of eyes. A father, a protector and the village.

Ilya Kaminsky explores topics of war, devastation, and home through her ground-breaking narrative collection Deaf Republic. I found the concept of a village becoming deaf in a silent protest against the killing of a young boy to be so compelling and unique. The entire premise of this collection is what drove me to buy it from a little charity shop in Edinburgh back in early November 2024. Teamed with a bright orange cover and beautiful sign language illustrations Deaf Republic expertly captures a sense of community and compassion.

I mainly bought this collection as a way to reflect on the worlds current state of affairs. There is war and famine in multiple areas of the globe and for me, this collection was a way to reflect on the harsh realities of war.

This was a very easy read and relatively short in length despite the big topics it covers in a small space of time. This won't be one I will read again in the future - simply because the topic of war is too devastating but I will silently applaud the genius that went into this story and the imaginative approach to joining poetry and sign language together for one impactful story.